A Captain Needs A Lady
by Lollipop456
Summary: A revamp of "Voyage Of The Heart." Cora Darrow is Anne Darrow's sister and decides to go on the voyage with her sister. She doesn't know that she'll face dangerous swamps, dinosaurs, a giant gorilla, and an unwelcomed romance. EnglehornxOC. I aged Cora!
1. Chapter 1

Cora Darrow sat in front of her mirror. She was putting some makeup on. She was 22-years-old, only a few years younger than her older sister Anne. Suddenly, Cora's powder dumped onto the floor. Actually, it wasn't her powder at all. It was from sister's makeup for her vaudeville shows. Cora always wanted to be like Anne. Always wanted to be involved with vaudeville. As a dancer. Cora rushed to brush the powder up off the floor. She heard the door open and she knew it was Anne.

"Cora? Where are you?" Anne said.

"In my room. I'll be there in a second."

Cora finished cleaning up the powder and then went to greet Anne. She ran up to Anne and hugged her.

"Anne, I wanted to see you perform. Did the show end early?" Cora asked.

"There was no show, Cora. The theatre closed. It's all over."

"No! The theatre can't close. Think about all the people who need a laugh now more than ever. Think about the people without a job now. Manny, god love him, can't survive on the streets by himself. What about us? What do we have? A three room loft with no bathtub. We have to wash our hair in the sink, Anne! We can't live like this."

"I'll find a job, Cora. A job to support both of us."

"Why not let me work? I could work in a soup kitchen or perhaps dance for money. You know how I love to dance, Anne."

"You know that I promised Mom and Dad that I wouldn't put you through this. I told them that I would take care of both of us and I will."

"I'm twenty-two, Anne. I'm a big girl. Let me take care of myself."

"I'm sorry, Cora. I can't."

Cora bursted into tears and ran to her room. She flopped down on the bed and hugged her pillow.

"Cora, stop this. You say you're twenty-two and you're acting like a selfish child."

"For good reason. I deserve a job to! It seems like everyone is doing something and I'm stuck. Going absolutely nowhere. I'll be an old maid and I'll never be in the picture shows. Look at me. I'm dressed like an old hag."

"We can only afford these clothes."

"Well, no man would ever look at a girl who wears rags."

"Cora Louise Darrow. Sit up straight and look at me."

Cora wiped her tears away and then turned to Anne.

Cora sniffled. "I'm listening." She said.

"I know it's been hard since Mom and Dad died and I know we can't afford the finest things in life. We have each other. That should be enough for you."

"I love you, Anne. I really do. I just want better things. Is that so much to ask?"

"No. I promise, Cora, one day you will have those things and more. Now, you've gotta settle with what we do have, all right?"

"All right."

"Are you hungry?"

"A little."

"Great. I do have some soup."

"Soup?"

"Yeah and some bread."

"It's a banquet! Where did you get the bread and soup?"

"I stole it."

"Stole it? Anne, you know that stealing is wrong."

"It's the only way to keep food on the table. Besides, I'll pay them back one day."

"One day? Anne, we can hardly afford clothes. We can't pay off debts!"

"I know, I know. It's alot to deal with but we CAN deal with it."

"Oh Anne, let's face it. If we don't find some money soon. You know we'll be out on the street. I hardly have enough in my piggy bank to pay off the landlord."

"We'll get by, Cora. I'll look for a job tomorrow. I promise."

"There's just no guartnee that you'll find one."

The next morning, Anne went looking for a job. Cora just laid in bed and waited impatiently for her sister's return. Finally, after six hours, Anne returned home. Cora ran to see if Anne had any good news.

"Did you find a job?" Cora asked.

"No, but I was offered one."

"What was it?"

"I was offered a job to star in a picture show. Directed by Carl Denham."

"Carl Denham? Anne, he's directed some of the greatest talking pictures! If you were in one of his pictures, you could be a star! So could I. This could be the chance we were meant to take. We'll be famous, Anne."

"I rejected the offer."

"What?"

"Cora, can you possibly see me in a talking picture? I'd never make it."

"Anne, it's acting. You've been doing it all your life. You were in vaudeville, remember?"

"It's different. I won't have an audience."

"Yes you will. You just won't be able to see them."

"You don't understand, Cora. Hearing my audience laugh and smile. That's all I care about. I don't want the audience to walk out of the picture in tears. This is the Depression. I don't want to make it worse than it already is."

"Well, who's writing the picture?"

"Jack Driscoll."

"Jack Driscoll! Anne, you love his plays. You'll probably get a chance to meet him."

"I know, but I can't do it."

"Anne Keira Darrow, you listen to me. A chance like this only comes once in a lifetime. You have got to take it, Anne."

"What about you?"

"I'll be okay. You'll only be gone to film the picture."

"There's something else I didn't mention. The picture is going to be filmed on location."

"Where? England? France?"

"An island. An island that may not even exist."

"Sounds wonderful!"

"It sounds insane. I can't leave you in New York if there is a chance I won't be back."

"Okay, then I'll come with you."

"Cora, you can't. It might be dangerous."

"Incase you haven't noticed, Anne. I'm a woman. Not a child. Let me come."

"If you promise to behave..."

"Oh thank you, Anne!"

Cora hugged Anne and then rushed to her room.

"Where are you going?"

"To pack my suitcase!"

The following evening, both Cora and Anne got into a taxi and went to the docks. Anne went to speak to Mr.Denham while Cora just stared up at the large ships.

"Hey lady!" The taxi driver said.

Cora, startled by the voice, turned back towards the taxi.

"Yes sir?"

"My fee."

"Oh right."

Cora rummaged through her purse but could only find one quarter.

"This is all I have."

Cora handed the quarter but the driver threw at her face. A man, who was standing nearby, witnessed this and stormed up to the taxi.

"Hey, what are you a kid? You just don't throw things at people because they don't have a few dollars on them. Everyone's broke nowadways if you hadn't noticed. If you want money..."

The man reached into his coat pocket and pulled out at least five dollars and then handed it to the taxi driver.

"I've got plenty of it. Now either apologize to this girl or I'll have your ass sued."

"Fine. I'm sorry."

The taxi took off.

"You okay?" The man asked.

"I'm fine. He didn't hurt me. Thanks for paying him."

"My pleasure."

"Did you really mean what you said? I mean about you suing his ass."

The man chuckled. "Well, I guess I did." He said.

"I'm surprised anybody has the money. What are you? A lawyer?"

"A writer."

Cora gasped in excitement and jumped off the ground.

"Oh, you must be Jack Driscoll. My sister Anne loves your plays. I must say that you're alot taller than I expected you to be, but that's just fine."

"You are..."

"Darrow. Cora Darrow."

Cora tucked her suitcase under her arm and gave Mr.Driscoll a firm handshake.

"You have quite a grip for a girl."

"Well, dancers are suppose to have good muscles. It's what keep us flexible."

"You're a dancer?"

"No, but I will be. As soon as Anne gets her big break, then I will get mine."

"Your sister, right?"

"Yeah. I know this really great tap dance! I saw it in a picture once."

Cora began dancing all around.

"Well, I suppose it's better in the picture."

"Nonsense. You're very good."

"Thanks, Mr.Driscoll."

"It was wonderful to meet you, Cora."

Mr.Driscoll tipped his hat and walked away. Cora giggled and began to hum one of her favorite tunes that she had heard on the radio at the soup kitchen. As she began walking towards the boat, she collided with someone and all her clothes dumped out of her suitcase.

"Oh no. They're ruined." Cora said.

Cora kneeled down to pick up her clothes.

"My apologies." A voice said.

"Oh, it's okay. I'll just share clothes with my sister. She won't mind."

Cora finished packing her clothes back up.

"Let me help you." The voice said.

"Thanks."

A hand suddenly took Cora's hand and helped her off the ground. Cora finally saw the source of the voice. It was a man. Not a young man by any means. He seemed to be a little bit older than Anne. Probably 30 or beyond. Either way, he was a bit handsome.

"Are you part of Mr.Denham's crew?" Cora asked.

"No. At least, not in the sense that you speak of. I'm captain of the Venture. It's the ship that the film crew will be on."

"So you're the Captain?"

"Yes mam. Are you to be aboard The Venture?"

"Yes. My sister Anne is the lead in Mr.Denham's picture."

"Well, then. I welcome you both aboard."

"Thanks...Captain..."

"Englehorn. Abraham Englehorn."

"Pleasure to meet you, Captain Englehorn. Can you show me where my cabin is?"

"I'd be honored. Think of it as an apology."

"Apology accepted." Cora said.


	2. Chapter 2

Captain Englehorn showed Cora to her cabin. It was small but it was alot cleaner than she had expected. Cora laid her suitcase down and took a seat in her bed.

"It's a bunk. Your sister will be sharing this cabin. Is that all right?"

"That's swell. Me and Anne aren't really use to being in seperate rooms in the first place. Oh, I just can't believe I'm here."

"You seem excited."

"Well, of course I am! I've never been outside of New York before. Besides, my sister is going to be in a picture! A talking picture! It's like something straight out of a-"

"A picture?"

"Exactly. Oh, I cannot wait to see where Mr.Denham is shooting the picture. Maybe we're heading for London or Paris! I've always wanted to see Paris! Don't you think I'd look good in a big hat all the way from France?"

"Yes. I do."

"Well, I better unpack."

"I could help you."

"Aren't you suppose to be steering?"

"I have Mr.Hayes handle the helm. I'm all yours."

"Well, thanks, Captain Englehorn, but I'm capable of unpacking. I'm not some damsel in distress."

"If you say so, Miss Darrow."

Captain Englehorn turned to leave when he heard Cora grunting. He turned and saw that Cora couldn't open her suitcase.

"I think it's stuck." Cora said.

Captain Englehorn smiled and banged on the suitcase three times. It finally popped open.

"Golly. Where did you learn that?"

"I taught myself."

Cora began to unpack her clothes with Captain Englehorn's help.

"You know. Anne never did say who else was in the picture. I wonder if it's Clark Gable. Oh, I simply loved him in "Night Nurse." Of course, he only played a waiter. I thought he was really brave though. Why, if I was in the pictures, and I had to be alongside Barbara Stanwyck in that awful nurse gown. Why, I wouldn't be able to bare it."

"I've heard rumors that somebody by the name of Baxter is to come aboard."

"Baxter? Bruce Baxter? Oh, I simply love him! "Rough Riders" is my favorite picture! I paid a whole nickel just to see it! I must meet him. Oh, how do I look?"

"You look-"

"Oh, what does it matter? I'm sure he'll notice me! Thanks again, Captain."

Cora ran from the cabin and went to deck. She waited for almost an hour before she finally caught sight of Bruce Baxter, the handsome picture actor, coming aboard The Venture. Cora ran up to him and tried to calm her nerves.

"Mr.Baxter, I'm a huge fan of your work. I've seen almsot everyone of your pictures."

"Are you the help?"

"No. I'm the sister of Anne Darrow. Your leading lady."

"Well. Nobody said that she had such a lovely sister. What's your name, kid?"

"C-Cora. Cora Darrow."

Bruce took Cora's hand and kissed it. She felt her legs turn to rubber and stared on at Bruce as he walked away.


	3. Chapter 3

The first few nights aboard the Venture were difficult for Cora. Having not known life outside of New York, Cora found herself unable to sleep. However, Anne was sleeping perfectly. One evening, Cora knew she would

not be able to sleep. So, she decided to go onto the deck, in hopes that stargazing would help her drift to sleep. Cora wrapped herself in her robe and went to deck, only to see Captain Englehorn standing on deck and

looking up at the stars.

"Captain Englehorn?"

Slowly, Captain Englehorn turned to Cora and gave a small smile.

"Don't worry, Miss Darrow. Mr. Hayes has control of the helm."

"Well, that's a good thing to know but I am more worried about you. Why are you awake at this hour?" Cora said.

"Why are you?"

"I suppose we both are suffering sleeping troubles. I thought it would be best to come out onto deck until I felt tired. I didn't want to wake Anne with all my tossing and turning."

"Come here, Miss Darrow. I want to show you something."

Cora, although reluctant, approached Captain Englehorn and looked up to the sky. Captain Englehorn pointed to the brightest star in the sky.

"Do you know that star?" Captain Englehorn asked.

"Yes. That's the north star. I read about in my schoolbooks."

"Then surely you heard of that one."

Captain Englehorn pointed out a group of stars, Cora cocked her head to one side and tried to figure what Captain Englehorn was pointing out.

"Look closely. You'll see it." Captain Englehorn said.

Cora stared at the group of stars for awhile until she saw what Captain Englehorn was seeing.

"Now, I see it. Only, I can't tell what it is."

"It's the Centaur, Miss Darrow. Half-horse and half-man. It's the only constellation I can truly relate to."

"Why?"

"It's not important. You'd better go back to your cabin."

"Please tell me."

"It's not your concern. Return to your cabin."

Upon realizing that Captain Englehorn was angry, Cora backed away and ran for her cabin. When Cora arrived at the cabin, she accidentally slammed the door, this woke Anne in a second.

"Cora, what happened?" Anne asked.

"N-nothing, Anne. I was sleepwalking." Cora said.

Cora crawled into her bunk and let out a sigh. In her heart, Cora knew something was ailing Captain Englehorn and Cora was determined to figure out what it was. The next morning, Cora woke up late and ran to the

deck to see if she could apologize to Captain Englehorn. When Cora finally caught sight of Englehorn, Cora's eyes wandered towards Bruce who was leaning over the deck's rail. Cora quickly primped her hair and

adjusted her dress. Bruce turned and saw Cora walking towards him, which was exactly what he wanted. Bruce quickly ran his fingers through his hair and let out a deep breath.

"Sleep well, kid?" Bruce asked.

"Yes, Mr. Baxter." Cora said.

"No more of this "Mr. Baxter." I have a name you know."

"Sorry, Mr. Bax...Bruce."

"So, did you come to watch the filming?"

"No, I was just looking for Captain Englehorn and then I saw you and-"

"Then you wanted to talk to me?"

"Yes."

"I'm glad. I need the company of lovely women."

"You are just like you are in the moving pictures."

"Well, how am I in the pictures?"

"Romantic."

"Well, critics have called me other things but "romantic" sure it wasn't one of them."

"Don't listen to other people. Listen to your fans."

"That's easy. If only they're pretty as you."

Cora began blushing as Bruce gave Cora a kiss on the cheek.

"Next time. Be prepared. You might get more." Bruce said.

Bruce winked at Cora and walked away. Cora felt like she was going to faint. Her favorite moving picture star had kissed her. It was like Cinderella and her Prince. Little did Cora know, this fairy-tale was going to take

a rather strange turn.


	4. Chapter 4

As the weeks went by and the Venture continued to sail, Cora and Bruce began to flirt immensely with each other. It was obvious that they were smitten, almost like lovesick teenagers. Englehorn also noticed Cora and

Bruce's flirting. That doesn't mean that he enjoyed it. Infact, he hated it! He had seen young love like this in his lifetime, and he knew that Cora's heart would be broken someday soon. Englehorn did not want to be a

witness to that. Still, there was nothing he could do, he was a ship captain and was not one to interfere in other people's lives. One evening, Cora was in her cabin when Bruce entered and took a seat next to Cora.

"You're not filming today." Cora said.

"I am. I just wanted to drop by and personally deliver this." Bruce said.

Bruce reached into his pocket and pulled out a seashell. Cora was dazzled by the beauty of the shell. Infact, she was so dazzled that she was nearly tempted to swipe it from Bruce's hands.

"Oh my! It's beautiful. Where did you find it?"

"I was on deck and I guess when we had that storm a few days ago it washed onto the ship. Now, I want you to hold it to your ear and listen closely."

Cora took the shell and held it to her ear. For awhile, there was nothing but silence. Soon, Cora could hear the sound of waves crashing and wind blowing inside of the shell. Cora began to giggle as Bruce broke into

a smile.

"Keep it, kid. I have no use for it." Bruce said.

"Well, thank you.I just don't understand what I've done to deserve this." Cora said.

"A beautiful shell needs to go to a beautiful person."

"You think I'm beautiful?"

Bruce brought his hand to Cora's cheek and gave it a small caress.

"You are the most gorgeous gal that I've ever seen and I've seen alot of them."

Suddenly, Bruce brought his lips to Cora's lips. For several seconds, they both stayed in a rather passionate liplock until Cora broke apart from him and shook her head.

"No. We can't do this." Cora said.

"Why not?"

"Because we both know what will happen when we get back to New York. You'll leave and I'll have to stay behind and go back to the life that I've been living for twenty-two years! Twenty-two years of my blood, sweat

and my tears. Bruce, you were born into the lifestyle that only a normal person could dream about. I'm not rich and I'm hardly who would call Claudette Colbert."

"I never said that I wanted to love someone like me, Cora. I want to love someone who can see somebody beside a big movie star. I'm not as arrogant as I seem, and I'm not without flaws. After all, my hair can be

horrible in the morning."

"Well, I am flattered but..."

"Give me a chance, Cora. One chance."

"One chance?"

"One small chance."

Cora nodded and Bruce gave her another kiss and then left the cabin. For awhile, Cora could do nothing but stare at the shell that Bruce had given her. Finally, she decided that perhaps a nap would do her good

and clear her mind. Cora woke up about sunset and retreated to the ship's galley to have supper, she preferred to dine there because she enjoyed the company of the crew. Especially a young sailor named Jimmy

who she had come to befriend. As Cora ate, Captain Englehorn entered and sat down to eat his supper.

"I trust your rest was peaceful, Miss Darrow." Englehorn said.

"What?" Cora asked.

"Your sister said that she saw you resting when she returned to the cabin."

"Oh, yes. I did rest well. Thank you for asking, Captain."

"She also said that she saw a conch shell laying at the foot of the bed. Did you find the shell on deck?"

"I-I didn't. It was a gift."

"From your parents?" Captain Englehorn asked.

"No. It was from Mr. Baxter."

For a moment, there was silence. Most of the crew could sense the tension between Cora and Captain Englehorn.

"I see. I suppose that means that you've come to enjoy his presence." Captain Englehorn said.

"Well, he did kiss me." Cora suddenly said.

"He kissed you? Well, I'm glad. You deserve to be happy, Miss Darrow." Captain Englehorn said.

Captain Englehorn rose from the table and left the galley. Cora turned to Jimmy, who could only offer a small smile.

"Don't worry. The Captain is only tired. It's been a long week." Jimmy said.

Cora knew that probably wasn't all that was bothering Captain Englehorn.


	5. Chapter 5

Six weeks went by, there was still no sign of the film location and Cora and Bruce were growing closer with each passing day. One day, Cora was in her cabin and fixing her hair, when she saw Anne enter.

"Are you done filming for the day?" Asked Cora, running a brush through her hair.

"No. I only wanted to speak to you." Anne said, sitting on her bunk.

"What about?" Asked Cora.

"About you and Mr. Baxter."

Cora turned to Anne and sighed, knowing her secret had finally been discovered.

"We tried to stay apart, Anne. I swear it." Cora said.

"Then what happened?" Asked Anne.

Cora shrugged. "We fell in love." She said.

"Nobody falls in love so easily, Cora. You are only infatuated with him." Anne said.

"I think I know when I am in love, Anne. You may be my sister, but you are not to say who I should and who I shouldn't love." Cora said.

Cora got up and stormed out of the cabin, as she was walking down the hall, she bumped into Captain Englehorn who was carrying a crate of some sort.

"I'm sorry, Captain." Cora said.

"No harm done, Miss Darrow. Is everything all right?" Captain Englehorn said.

"I only needed some air."

Cora brushed her way past Captain Englehorn and went to the deck. She leaned against the ship's railing and gazed at the morning sky, she suddenly felt a hand come to her shoulder. She turned and saw Bruce standing behind her.

"What's going on?" Asked Bruce.

"Do you love me?" Asked Cora.

"What?"

"I want to hear you say it, Bruce. I want to hear you say that you love me." Cora said.

Bruce smiled and turned Cora around so she could face him. He brought his hand to her face and then gave her a kiss on the lips.

"I love you." Bruce said.

Cora hugged Bruce and felt tears run down her face. Upon noticing that Cora was crying, Bruce lifted her chin.

"Cora, what's wrong?" Asked Bruce.

"Nothing." Cora said, but she knew Bruce doubted that when she saw him arch his eyebrow. "I'm only going to miss you. When everything is over."

"It doesn't have to be like that." Bruce said, taking a light grip on Cora's shoulder blades. "Come live with me. You can have everything you want, you could be a dancer. We could even do a few pictures together, if you like. We wouldn't have to be apart."

"I can't do it, Bruce. I can't leave Anne alone. We've been together since our parents died." Cora said.

"Is she more important than our future together?" Asked Bruce.

"Of course not." Cora said, shaking her head. She took Bruce's hands. "She'll be fine. She is a grown woman."

"Does this mean that you'll do it?" Asked Bruce.

"I'll do it. I'll live with you." Cora said, breaking into a smile.

Bruce hugged Cora and then lifted her in his arms, and then spun her around on deck. Unknown to them, Captain Englehorn had heard the whole thing. He sadly left deck and then went to his cabin, knocking everything off of a nearby table.


	6. Chapter 6

When Cora was returning to her cabin, she Captain Englehorn kneeling on the floor and picking up small pieces of glass.

"Did you drop something?" asked Cora.

"No. I bumped into this table and a damn vase shattered."

"Let me help."

Cora knelt on the floor next to Captain Englehorn and helped him clean up the glass. Soon, they both reached for a rather large shard, and found that their hands were touching. Cora carefully pulled away and quickly tossed the piece of glass away into a nearby trash container.

"I talked to Jimmy the other day. He said that you once had sailed the Venture through a hurricane."

"Jimmy loves to embellish."

"So it's not true?"

"I've sailed through many storms, Miss Darrow. None of them were friendly."

"So it _is _true."

Captain Englehorn nodded. "Yes. It's true."

The two shared a smile. Suddenly, Mr. Hayes drifted into the cabin and touched Captain Englehorn's shoulder and whispered something in his ear.

"Excuse me, Miss Darrow."

"Is something wrong?" asked Cora.

"Nothing. I just need to see to something."

Captain Englehorn rushed off, but Cora grabbed Mr. Hayes before he could go any further.

"Mr. Hayes, what is it?" asked Cora.

"We've just received a message from New York."

"New York?"

"There's a warrant out for Denham's arrest. We have to get back to New York as soon as possible and turn him in."

"What will happen to the picture?"

"Well, Denham can't direct from behind a cell door, can he?"

Mr. Hayes left Cora alone and Cora sadly returned to her cabin. Not only would Anne be upset, but Cora had been so excited about seeing the mysterious island. She sat down in her bunk and sighed, only minutes before Bruce arrived. He sat next to Cora and gave her a long kiss.

"I have a question. Be honest." said Bruce.

"Of course."

"Do I look pretty good without a mustache?"

"Yes. You look perfect just the way you are."

"Really? I-I don't need to grow one?"

"Let me guess: Another one of Jimmy's pranks?"

"No one should give that kid a pen." Bruce chuckled, but Cora did not.

"What's wrong, Cora?"

"I'm just a little upset. That's all."

"About what?"

"Mr. Denham is supposed to be in jail. There's a warrant out. We're going back to the city."

"Hey, this is great news. This means we can get our own place sooner than we thought. It works out perfectly."

"I guess. It's just that this job means so much to Anne, and this was my only taste of adventure. I just wish I could've seen the island."

"Hey, no worries. You'll see an island. We'll take a trip to Hawaii. I do own a plane and we can leave the moment we get back to New York."

"You really mean that?"

"Of course I mean it."

"Oh Bruce, I love you!" said Cora, throwing her arms around Bruce.

Suddenly, the Venture made a sharp turn; Cora and Bruce toppled over and rolled onto the floor.

"I guess we're on our way home." said Bruce.

"I'm going to the kitchen. See if Lumpy has cooked anything that I can actually hold down." said Cora.

As Cora headed for the kitchen, the Venture suddenly stopped and Cora was suddenly thrust against a wall. Terrified that something had happened to Bruce; Cora picked herself up and made her way back to her cabin. Bruce was laying near Cora's bunk, groaning in pain. Cora ran to him.

"Bruce, are you all right?" asked Cora.

"I just hit my head. What about you?" asked Bruce.

"I'm fine. I wonder what happened?"

"I don't know. But I'm going to find out."

Cora and Bruce went to deck and found that the Venture was lost in a deep fog and was wedged right between two rocks. It looked like the Venture had just hit some sort of wall. The wall of an island. Cora saw Mr. Denham and ran up to him.

"Mr. Denham, what happened?" asked Cora, but Denham didn't answer. "Mr. Denham?"

"It is real. I knew it." whispered Denham.

"What did you say?" asked Cora.

"Cora, tell your sister to hurry to a longboat. We've got a picture to shoot."

"We're practically stranded in the middle of the ocean and you want to film your picture?"

"We're not stranded. We're right where we need to be."

"What do you mean?"

"We made it, Cora. We've made it to Skull Island."


	7. Chapter 7

Cora found Anne and told her where they were, and Anne was just as shock as Cora was. As soon as the sun came up, Mr. Denham and his crew piled into the life boats. Cora did feel bad about sneaking off the ship and leaving Captain Englehorn and his men to try and unwedge The Venture, but she knew that eventually he would be able to save it. As the boats rowed closer to Skull Island, Cora began to feel uneasy as she saw lifeless corpses floating on the surface.

"Bruce, we should go back. This could be dangerous." whispered Cora.

"We'll be fine, Cora." whispered Bruce, but Cora could tell he was uneasy.

The boats finally reached the shores of Skull Island and everyone climbed out to investigate the strange place. The entire time, Cora clutched onto Bruce's arm, especially when she would see something even remotely frightening. They finally reached the other side of the island's wall, and came upon a village in ruins. All was quiet and still, and there was nothing more frightening than a place covered in silence.

"It's deserted." said Preston.

"Of course it's deserted. Use your eyes, Preston. The place is a ruin. Nobody's lived here for hundreds of years." said Mr. Denham.

Suddenly, everyone could heard the sound of a child crying. They all turned and saw a little girl, who didn't even appear to be human. Her skin was dark and dusty, her eyes were wild and red, her hair was knotted with tangles, and she had little to no clothing. She suddenly pointed, but nobody could see what she was pointing at. But everyone was frightened.

"I'll handle this." whispered Mr. Denham.

Mr. Denham took a Nestle's Crunch Bar and approached the little girl, obviously trying to offer it to her.

"Look chocolate...you like chocolate?" asked Mr. Denham, but the child didn't speak.

As Mr. Denham drew closer to the child, rain began to pour down and the sound of thunder could be heard. Mr. Denham continued to offer the chocolate bar to the child, but she still wouldn't take it. Mr. Denham finally had enough and tried to force it into her hand.

"For God's sake, Denham, leave the native alone!" yelled Bruce.

"She doesn't want the chocolate." said Mr. Driscoll, his voice calm.

Suddenly, the child bit Mr. Denham on the wrist and fled into the arms of an elderly woman, who looked very similar to the child herself. Suddenly, everyone realized that they were completely surrounded by natives. But none of them seemed to be young, infact most of them were either women or elderly people. There were a few children, though.

"It's alright. It's just a bunch of women and old folk. They're harmless." said Mr. Denham.

Suddenly, there was a gasp. One of Mr. Denham's crew members had been hit with an arrow, which caused Anne to let out a terrifying scream that pierced the air. Out of nowhere, came more and more natives. Soon everyone was being attacked, including Cora and Anne. As one of the natives forced Cora to the ground, she could Bruce being beaten terribly. Soon, he was unconscious.

"Bruce!" screamed Cora.

Suddenly, Cora felt something hit her back hard. It kept hitting her again and again and again. Cora finally realized that she was being hit with a rock. An extremely hard rock, no doubt. Soon, Cora's entire back was bloody and bruised. Never had Cora felt so much pain, and she had no idea if she would be able to survive it. Suddenly, a gunshot rang through the air and the beating stopped. For a moment, there was silence and then the natives suddenly ran away.

Cora felt someone pull her up and set her on her feet, she looked up and saw Captain Englehorn. Relieved, Cora hugged him and kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you for saving us." said Cora.

Before Captain Englehorn could respond, Anne rushed up to Cora and hugged her.

"Thank goodness!" said Anne.

"Are you okay?" asked Cora.

"I'm just fine."

Cora gasped in terror when she finally saw Bruce laying on the ground, practically lifeless. She rushed to him and stroked his face. Captain Englehorn watched on sadly, thinking how nice it was to hug her.

"Bruce, wake up, please." sobbed Cora.

"I'll only open my eyes if you kiss me." said Bruce.

Cora laughed and kissed Bruce, then gave him a hug. Cora helped him off the ground and helped him back to the Venture. Later at night, Cora and Bruce decided to help Captain Englehorn and his crew free The Venture. Captain Englehorn insisted that this was no work for a woman and Cora should rest because of her injuries, but Cora said it was only way to repay him for what he did. It took almost an hour and heavy rains tried to make it impossible, but The Venture was finally free from the rocks. Everyone let out a cheer and Cora gave Bruce a long kiss, and then hugged him.

"We're going home aren't we, Bruce?" asked Cora.

"We're going back, Cora." said Bruce.

As The Venture turned around back towards New York; Mr. Driscoll suddenly came to deck and urged for Captain Englehorn to turn it around. Then, he said the words that Cora never thought she hear:

"They've taken Anne." said Mr. Driscoll.

"Anne? Who has Anne? Where is my sister?" asked Cora, her voice showing her panic.

"The natives. They took her." said Mr. Driscoll.

Cora was in such a state of shock that she almost fell to the ground, but Bruce quickly caught her. Captain Englehorn stood in a state of shock, not knowing what to do. Finally, the shock wore off and he turned The Venture back towards Skull Island. As everyone was leaving The Venture to go and search for Anne, Cora was stopped by Bruce.

"Cora, you've gotta stay here." said Bruce.

"Anne is my sister, I've got to help her." said Cora.

"Fine. Help her by letting her see her sister alive and unharmed."

"I'll be all right."

"You saw what those natives did to you. They killed Mike, they beat us till we bled and almost killed us. I'm not putting you at risk."

"It's my choice, not yours. Anne is my sister and I'm not going to sit by and do nothing."

"All right. Just promise me that you won't go far, and you'll stick by me at all times."

"I will."

Cora and Bruce joined hands and walked off The Venture together. Everyone began searching for Anne, but saw nothing. They made their way towards the wall and then heard Anne let out a loud scream, which was followed by a roar.

"Behind the wall!" yelled Mr. Driscoll.

Mr. Driscoll rushed to the other side of the wall, while Cora waited anxiously for his return with Anne. When Mr. Driscoll came back, he seemed extremely upset.

"She's gone." said Mr. Driscoll.

Cora turned to Bruce and he hugged her, just as Mr. Denham returned, but he wasn't upset. He was in shock.

"Carl, what is it?" asked Mr. Driscoll, but Mr. Denham's face said it all. "You saw something."

"Mr. Denham, did you see what took my sister?" asked Cora.

"It was...It was a creature. A large creature." said Mr. Denham, his voice was barely audible.

Cora stared at Mr. Denham in disbelief. Even if a giant creature did exist, then why would it be on Skull Island? And worse, what did it want with Anne?


	8. Chapter 8

Cora sat on the beach, watching as weapons were being handed out to Anne's search party. Bruce approached her, and laid his hand on her arms.

"Go with Englehorn." Bruce said.

Cora shook her head quickly. "No, I'm not going back on board. I'm going to help you and the others find Anne."

"This is a man's job, Cora. You think that I'm going to let you go off into a godforsaken jungle and get killed by some wild animal?"

"She's all I've got left in this world, Bruce. I don't want to see her killed..." Cora looked up at Bruce. "I _won't _see her killed."

Cora walked away from Bruce and was startled when a hand came to her shoulder only a few minutes later. She turned and saw Captain Englehorn.

"You're going with them." Captain Englehorn said.

"Captain please, there is no point in changing my mind-"

Captain Englehorn held up his hand to pause Cora. "That's not my intention, Miss Darrow. I just wanted to wish you well."

Cora smiled. "Thank you, Captain."

For a moment, Captain Englehorn stared at Cora and brought his hand to her cheek. Using his thumb, he stroked her lips.

"Be safe, Miss Darrow." Captain Englehorn pulled his hand away from Cora's lips and walked towards the others.

Cora stood for a moment, confused by Captain Englehorn's behavior and then approached Bruce, as Captain Englehorn was addressing the search party.

"You got guns, you got food, you got ammo. You got twenty-four hours." Captain Englehorn said.

"Twenty-four hours?" Bruce repeated.

"This time tomorrow we haul anchor." Captain Englehorn said.

The search party, which consisted of Cora, Bruce, Lumpy, Choy, Mr. Denham (with Herb the camerman and Preston, who was Denham's assistant in his tow), Mr. Driscoll, and eight sailors began to make their way through the gate. Before Bruce could leave, Cora saw him get dragged aside by Captain Englehorn. She was close enough to hear what he was saying to him.

"I don't give a damn if you live or die, Baxter. I think this will prove to be worthless and all you'll find is danger, ruins, and, unforunately, Miss Darrow's corpse at the bottom of a pit. That said: If you live and return without Cora, then you'll find your neck underneath my shoe. Do you understand?"

Bruce nodded quickly. "Anything you say, Captain." He ran and caught up to Cora. "We should catch up with everyone."

Cora looked back at Captain Englehorn one last time; surprised that he had so little faith in the search for Anne, but touched that he seemed to care for Cora so deeply.

"Cora?" The sound of Bruce's voice startled Cora, and she turned to him.

Bruce held out his hand, Cora gave a small smile and took it. Together, they followed the search party into the jungle.


	9. Chapter 9

As night began to fall, the search party made their way through the jungle. For awhile, they all paused to rest, and Cora took this chance to remove her shoes. Small, jagged pieces of rocks had made their way into the shoes, and Cora realized that both of her feet were smeared with blood.

"Good God, Cora!"

Cora looked up and saw Bruce rushing up to her. He knelt in front of her and touched her bloody feet.

"We need to get her back! Quick! She needs a doctor!" Bruce shouted.

"Bruce, I'm all right." Cora said calmly.

"Your feet are covered with blood." Bruce argued.

Cora sighed. "It's from the rocks. They've gotten caught in my shoes. All I need to do is wash off the blood and-"

Bruce grabbed a canteen from a sailor, without asking, and then poured most of the water on Cora's feet, rinsing off the blood.

"Here, use this as bandages." Bruce took a large handkerchief, with his initials engraved on it, and tore it into shreds, wrapping it around Cora's feet.

Cora smiled." Thank you, Bruce."

"Now, let's get you back to the Venture and have a doctor look you over."

Cora's smile faded. "I'm not going back, Bruce. You think that I'm going to let a few cuts and bruises stop me from finding my sister?"

"You're not exactly helping by killing yourself." Bruce murmured.

"Are you two lovebirds done? We've got a long way ahead of us." Lumpy shouted.

"Yes, I'm ready." Cora slipped her shoes back on and stood, refusing Bruce's assistance.

The search party continued through the jungle, with Cora keeping her distance from Bruce. She knew that he was concerned, but the idea of even suggesting that she go back when her only family was lost, had told Cora that perhaps she had perhaps really fallen in love with someone who didn't know her at all.

Just as the search party was making their way through an area that was covered with vines, they all heard a scream that echoed through the jungle.

"Ann!" Mr. Driscoll called out.

He and Cora led the others through the vines, both sharing an equal determination to reach Ann. Another sound was heard, but it was not a scream, it was roaring.

"Ann!"Mr. Driscoll shouted again.

Then, Ann screamed again. Cora looked behind her, seeing the terrified faces of the other members of the search party. Even Mr. Driscoll was looking scared, and he had been the most optimistic up until now.

"Me and Ann have survived our hardships, Mr. Driscoll. She's a brave woman, and does not give up easily. We shouldn't either."

Mr. Driscoll turned to Cora and nodded briefly. He began to press forward with Cora following close behind.


	10. Chapter 10

The search party continued on their way; going in the direction where Anne's scream had came. After an hour of travel, they came across an area that was littered with bones. Among them, was a necklace made of bones, and attached to it was a strand of blonde hair. Mr. Driscoll picked it up and showed it to Cora.

"Oh my goodness!" Cora exclaimed, observing the necklace. "That's Anne's hair. I know it anywhere."

Before Mr. Driscoll could say anything in response, the sun began to rise. Revealing even more bones, mainly human skulls.

"Christ! It's a bleeding bone yard!" Lumpy said. "They've been ripped from limb to limb."

Cora closed her eyes tight, trying not to think of what pain these humans had to endure before being destroyed by whatever creature had captured them. Bile rose into her throat as the sudden realization that Anne could soon be among these remains; Cora could practically hear her sister's bones being severed one by one.

"Cora?"

Cora jumped and saw Bruce standing behind her. She walked away slowly and soon her knees buckled and she threw up.

"Jesus, Cora!"

Bruce ran to Cora and rubbed her back, hoping that it would help to soothe her. Cora brushed him off and spit out the remains of her bile. Leaning against a tree, she felt hot tears streak her face.

"It could be her, Bruce. My sister could be one of them." Cora mumbled.

"She's not."

"Not here, not now. But she could be, Bruce. My sister could be dying, bleeding to death...I can't think about it...The idea of her dying...And dying in such pain..."

"Then don't. You'll find your sister, Cora. You will." Bruce said.

"_We _will find her." Cora corrected, wiping away her tears.

Bruce hesitated for a moment, before speaking. "Of course. That's what I had meant."

Bruce offered his hand to Cora and she took it, allowing Bruce to pull her to her feet. Hand in hand, they and the search party continued their way through the jungles of Skull Island.


	11. Chapter 11

The search party continued on, until they came to a valley; it was in ruins, and rather narrow. Everyone sat down to rest, including Cora who was beginning to feel dizzy from the heat.

"Hey fellas! We don't have time for this. We've lost too much time already, come on get up!" Mr. Driscoll urged.

Mister Hayes took Mr. Driscoll aside and spoke to him quietly. He then turned and addressed the search party.

"Alright, you got five minutes! Everybody stay in sight!" Mister Hayes ordered.

Cora took small sips from her canteen and wiped the sweat off her forehead. Bruce approached her and sat next to her, massaging her neck.

"You're completely soaked, Cora." Bruce said.

"It's the heat. I'm not really use to it." Cora explained to Bruce.

Before Bruce could say anything else, Mr. Denham walked over to them.

"What is it, Carl?" Bruce asked.

"I need you to come with me. I want to film a scene here." Mr. Denham explained.

Bruce turned to Cora. "Duty calls."

"You aren't serious, Bruce. How could you, or anyone else, want to shoot the picture when my sister is out there somewhere."

"We'll find her, Cora, but I didn't come here to just search. I came here for my job."

Bruce gave Cora a small kiss on the lips and then followed Mister Denham and his crew. Cora remained where she was, stunned by what Bruce had just said. Was his career more important than the life of his girlfriend's only sister?

"Bloody Nora!" A voice said suddenly.

Cora saw the sailors gathering around something; Mr. Driscoll was kneeling on the ground. Cora stood and went to see what the commotion was about: It didn't take her long to see a large footprint in the sand.

"Is that what took Miss Darrow?" Jimmy asked.

"There's only one creature capable of leaving a footprint that size..." Lumpy began to say, and all eyes went to him. "The abominable snowman!" He announced.

While the sailors seemed to agree, Cora wasn't so sure, and it seemed with Mr. Driscoll and Mister Hayes were reading her thoughts.

"It's gotta be-what? Twenty...Twenty-five feet?" Mister Hayes wondered out loud.

"Carl saw it. Let's ask him." Mr. Driscoll said.

"Denham!" Mister Hayes shouted, but there was no reply. "Where did he go?"

"Carl!" Mr. Driscoll shouted.

Cora sighed. "They're filming a scene for the picture."

"At a time like this?" Mr. Driscoll said, his voice raised.

Cora gave a meek nod. Soon, she could hear the sound of something rattling above her and, just as she looked up, rocks began to fall from the cliffs. What frightened her more was that the ground was beginning to shake.

"What's happening?" Cora asked.

Bruce suddenly came running towards them, he seemed incredibly spooked and quickly grabbed Cora's hand, and continued to run.

"What is it? Where's Carl?" Mr. Driscoll asked.

Bruce slowed down and turned to Mr. Driscoll, appearing extremely nervous. "He's...He's...um...well, he's up there. Filming."

Bruce said nothing more and took off running, with Cora attempting to keep up with him.

"Bruce, what is it? Why are you so scared?" Cora asked, panting as she spoke.

"Just don't stop running!" Bruce demanded.

So, they kept running, hand in hand. Finally, Cora looked over her shoulder and saw the remaining members of the search party running straight at them. She looked over their heads and saw just exactly what they were running from: a herd of dinosaurs!

"Don't look back! Keep going!" Bruce cried.

So, they all kept running. Trying their best to outrun the dinosaurs, but unfortunately not everyone was lucky. A few sailors were stomped to death under the feet of the large beasts; Cora could swear she heard all of their bones being crunched, one by one. Cora and Bruce were soon way ahead of the search party, and Cora was wondering if she should turn back to help. No matter if she wanted to, Bruce was keeping a tight hold on her hand and had no intentions of slowing down.

"Bruce-"

Before Cora could get another word out, a small dinosaur came running towards them. Bruce suddenly stopped and stood in front of Cora, holding up his gun.

"Bruce, it's too dangerous!" Cora shrieked, trying to pull Bruce's arm down.

Bruce did not listen and fired at the small dinosaur and missed. Or so Cora thought. Instead, he had managed to shoot down one of the larger dinosaurs, who began to tumble and fall. Soon the search party, save Bruce and Cora, were lost in the pile of collapsing dinosaurs. Some of the search party had thankfully emerged safely, including Mr. Denham and his crew, and Mr. Driscoll and Mr. Hayes.

The smaller dinosaurs soon stopped and began to feast on their larger cousins. Everyone took this opportunity to began climbing over a mountain of rocks to escape. Cora was able to climb over, with assistance from Bruce. The search party soon followed, but Cora noticed that Herbert, a camera man for Mr. Denham, was not amongst them.

While everyone seemed tired and rightfully frightened, Mr. Driscoll gave them all the strength to continue on the search. He didn't have to do much convincing when it came to Cora; she was determined to find her sister, and no dinosaur would stop her.

When they all came to a swamp, it was time for another rest. Cora, forgetting her own cuts and scratches, began to tend to the tired and injured sailors.

"Jimmy, do a head count. I wanna know how many are injured and how bad-"

"Injured? "Lumpy cut off Mr. Hayes. "Four of us are dead!"

Cora closed her eyes tight, draining her eyes of the tears that she shed for the fallen sailors and for Herbert.

"It was scary." Jimmy suddenly said.

Cora looked up and saw Jimmy sitting across from her, with a bleeding hand. She sighed and approached him, kneeling in front of him.

"Your hand was cut. Let me clean it." Cora said, trying to hide the fact that she was just as scared as Jimmy.

Cora ripped a shred of fabric from her dress and pressed it against Jimmy's hand. As she finished cleaning the cut, Bruce stood to his feet.

"We gotta get back to the ship. Englehorn sails in nine hours." Bruce said.

"So? We gotta find Miss Darrow." Jimmy argued.

Cora stood to her feet and walked up to Bruce. "He's right. We can't leave her behind, Bruce."

Bruce ignored Cora, and addressed Jimmy. "Hey, did you hear me? We're gonna be stranded here!"

"Bruce, I'm not leaving this island unless Anne is with me." Cora said quietly.

Bruce shook his head sadly and then noticed that Mr. Driscoll was giving him a foul stare. "Miss Darrow was a great gal. No question. She was a wonderful person. It's a terrible loss. We're all gonna miss her."

"She could still be alive!" Cora nearly shouted.

"What if she isn't? What are we here for then, huh?" Bruce argued.

"I always knew you were nothing like the tough guy you play on screen. I just never figured you for a coward." Mr. Driscoll said to Bruce.

"Hey, pal, wake up. Heroes don't look like me, not in the real world. In the real world they've got bad teeth, a bald spot, and a beer gut. Be seeing ya'. Come on, Cora."

Bruce began to walk away but soon realized that Cora wasn't following him. She sighed and walked up to him.

"I've said it many times, Bruce: I'm not giving up. I will find my sister."

"You're a crazy kid, Cora Darrow. You mean that your sister is more important than I am? Than what we have?"

"She's my only family, Bruce, you've gotta understand that."

Bruce shook his head. "You'll be killed out here. All of you will. I'm not staying around to search for some dame with a kid sister who only said she loved me to make sure I got her in pictures."

No longer able to contain her anger, Cora slapped Bruce across the face, and the search party watched on in stunned silence.

"A lovebird's left the nest, I believe." Lumpy muttered.

Cora ignored Lumpy, and began to speak quietly, but firmly, to Bruce. "I told you that I loved you because you had said you loved me. Now, you think I said it, only to get my chance in some lousy picture show? I had feelings for you, Bruce...Now, I can see you for what you really are."

"The smartest man on this island?" Bruce remarked.

Cora shook her head. "No, Bruce. A selfish bastard. Now leave or I'll hit you again."

"Good luck, kid. You'll need it. You'll all need it."

Bruce stormed off and back into the jungle. Cora wiped away a few tears that had fallen, and sniffled quietly. She did not regret breaking off her relationship with Bruce, but she didn't mean to call him such a terrible name and make him so angry.

"Anyone else?" Hayes asked, addressing the search party.

Soon, a couple of sailors ran off after Bruce. Cora felt a hand come to her shoulder and realized that it was Mr. Driscoll.

"That was a good thing you did, Cora. Anne will be proud when we find her." Mr. Driscoll said.

"And we will."

Cora reached into the pocket of dress and took out a secret present from Captain Englehorn: a small pistol.

"I don't need his protection anymore. I need to find my sister, and bring her home where she belongs."

Cora cocked the gun once and walked away from Mr. Driscoll, a strong sense of determination shining in her eyes.


	12. Chapter 12

The search party continued to make their way through the jungle, until they came upon a chasm. It seemed that their only way across was a long log that stretched across it. As they made their way onto the log, Cora held out her arms to keep herself balanced, pretending that she was a circus act on a tightrope.

"Just don't look down, all right?" Mr. Driscoll said to Cora.

"Don't worry. I have no intention of looking down." Cora said, keeping her eyes straight ahead.

Mr. Hayes was just ahead Cora, and Jimmy was just behind him. As Mr. Hayes stepped off the log, he paused and looked into the cave that was ahead.

"Go back! Back across the log!" Mr. Hayes ordered.

Everyone began to back away, Cora nearly lost her footing but Mr. Driscoll caught her by her arm and pulled her back up.

"Get Jimmy out of here." Mr. Hayes said, after Jimmy refused to go anywhere.

Mr. Driscoll and Cora began to pull on Jimmy, just as Mr. Hayes began shooting at the darkness of the cave.

What happened next terrified Cora; a large creature swiped Mr. Hayes up with one hand. The creature seemed to be an ape of sorts, but defintely not one that Cora had seen at any zoo. He was at least eighty feet and had a wild look about him; Cora just stood there shocked until Jimmy's screaming brought her back to reality.

"No! Let him go! Kill him! Kill him!" Jimmy yelled.

Mr. Driscoll kept a hold on Jimmy to stop from running forward to help Mr. Hayes. All Cora could to avoid shooting at this creature; this creature that could kill Mr. Hayes and possibly might have been the thing that took her sister, was to dig her fingernails into the palm of her hand.

"Bring him down! Mr. Hayes!" Jimmy continued to yell.

"You've gotta run, Jimmy." Mr. Hayes said.

"No! I ain't gonna run!" Jimmy shouted.

"Do as I say. Go with Jack...All of you." Mr. Hayes ordered.

Mr. Hayes gave one final shout to run, and soon the creature tossed him aside like a rag doll and fell down into the ravine below them.

Mr. Driscoll had to restrain Jimmy and soon everyone began shooting at the creature. Even Cora, whose eyes were stinging from fresh tears and blinding her vision. The creature advanced towards the search party and soon lifted up the log. Everyone began to hang on as the creature did all sorts of things to the log to shake them loose. Cora was so frightened and looked below at her inevitable death.

"Hey! Here! Over here!"

Cora was sure she heard a voice calling out. A very familiar voice. She looked up for a moment and saw something in the distance. Was it an animal? No. This was a human, and it was defintely Anne.

"Anne. Anne, you're alive." Cora whispered to herself.

Cora tried to stand, but it was too late. The creature finally tossed the log into the ravine below. As she fell, Cora closed her eyes tight, and she could not help but smile. If she died, at least she knew that her sister was alive. Anne was alive and that was all that mattered. Soon, she hit the ground and landed hard on her back, and then saw nothing but darkness.

"Cora? Cora, wake up."

Wake up? Hadn't she died? Hadn't everyone died when they fell? Cora struggled to open her eyes, expecting to see an angel waiting for her, but instead what she saw was the bruised and bloodied face of Mr. Driscoll.

"Mr. Driscoll?" Cora said.

"Yeah, it's me, kid. We're alive. Well...some of us..."

Cora turned her head to her right, though it hurt to do so. There, she saw Jimmy crumpled on the ground. "Jimmy..."

"I'll check on him, don't worry." Mr. Driscoll said.

Cora sighed in relief and then gave Mr. Driscoll a weak smile. "I saw her, Mr. Driscoll. I saw Anne. She's okay...She's alive."

Mr. Driscoll looked down at her and Cora saw something reflect in his eyes. Was that pity she saw?

"Can you sit up?" Mr. Driscoll asked.

Cora nodded slowly and Mr. Driscoll helped her sit up slowly, leaning her against a cold, stone wall. As Mr. Driscoll made his way to Jimmy, Cora took in her surroundings. There was nothing but darkness, and she saw three corpses: Mr. Hayes, a sailor that she didn't know well, and Choy who was perhaps one of the sweetest men she ever met on the voyage and Lumpy's best friend.

As Cora sat up some more, she felt a stinging pain in her leg. Pulling up her dress, she saw her leg was swollen to the size of a grapefruit and covered with large bruises. She knew that she could have gotten a lot worse than a broken leg.

Then, she heard it. At first, she thought it was rain, but then she surely would have felt it drop down. She listened more closely and realized it was the patter of something, something coming closer to them. And then, she heard a faint hissing in her ear, and her heartbeat grew louder.

"Cora, don't move!" Mr. Driscoll ordered.

Cora obeyed as Mr. Driscoll picked up his gun and aimed it straight at her. Instead of giving her a bullet to a head, Mr. Driscoll shot a large spider that exploded only inches away from Cora, its blood splattering her on her cheek.

Soon, there was more spiders and more large creatures. Cora saw her gun was only inches away from her and scooted closer to it. She grabbed it quickly and began firing madly at any creature that she saw, as the others took them on as well.

Everyone did all they could, but there was far too many of these insects. They couldn't do it by themselves and soon they would be eaten alive.

"It's no use! There's too many!" Cora shouted out.

Suddenly, there was gunshots from above and Cora looked up. There she could see Captain Englehorn and a few of his men; soon, Bruce came swinging down on a rope and opened fire on the insects. Now, these creatures didn't stand a chance, and soon everyone was beginning to climb a rope to safety. Cora had to be assisted by Bruce, even though he was the last person that she wanted help from.

As soon as reached the top of the chasm, Captain Englehorn was there to pull her up. As soon as he did, Cora couldn't help herself and hugged him tight, tears flowing freely.

"You're alive. I thought I had lost you." Captain Englehorn whispered.

Cora whimpered as Captain Englehorn pulled her closer and pulled his coat around her and then kissed her blonde hair. As Cora looked over her shoulder, she realized that she was the other side of the chasm, and not the side that led into the cave. The cave that could lead her to her sister.

"No! I have to keep going. Anne is alive. I saw her before I fell...She's alive."

"I'm not losing you! You're coming back!"

Cora struggled to break free from Captain Englehorn, but soon realized she had no strength to do it. As weakness overcame her, she prayed silently that Anne would forgive her. She soon fell into a faint into Captain Englehorn's arms, and all he could do was hold her.

"Don't ever scare me again, Cora Darrow. Don't ever do it." Captain Englehorn whispered.

"You love her, don't you?"

Captain Englehorn looked up and saw Preston standing behind him, looking down at the two of them.

"It's not your damn business who I care about, Mr. Preston." Captain Englehorn said.

After everyone was safe again, they made their way to the ship. All expect Mr. Driscoll who continued to go ahead with the search alone. Mr. Denham thought it was a brilliant plan, this way the creature could be captured.

"Cora, do you hear me?"

When Cora regained conscious, she found that her wounds were dressed and her leg had been placed in a set of stilts.

"You've been asleep for three days."

Cora looked up and saw the least expected person: Anne. Her sister was sitting on the foot of the bed, holding her hand and smiling. This had to be a dream and soon Cora would wake up and Anne would be gone again. But then, she never knew anyone to have dreams in so much pain.

"Anne? Anne, is it really you?" Cora asked, feeling tears run down her face.

"It's me. I'm safe." Anne brushed away Cora's tears with her thumb. "So are you. We're both safe."

Cora leaned forward and threw her arms around Anne. All the searching, all the pain and tears, and here Anne was. They were reunited at last.

"I thought that we would never find you." Cora said, finally releasing Anne and wiping away a few stray tears.

"Well, Jack found me with Kong and took me from him." Anne said.

"Kong?" Cora repeated. "Is that what took you?"

"Yes, he took me. I don't think he meant to harm me, Cora. I really don't think he did."

"It doesn't matter what that thing's intentions were, as long as you're all right."

Anne smiled. "Well, you had a pretty close call. Thank God for Captain Englehorn."

"Captain Englehorn? What do you mean?" Cora asked.

"Captain Englehorn is the one who stayed with you and nursed you back to health. He dressed your wounds, brought down your fever-"

"I had a fever?"

"Only a small one. He fed you, he held your hand, and once I had recovered to see you he insisted that I never leave your side."

"He did?"

Anne nodded and Cora laid against the pillows, taking everything in. Captain Englehorn had taken care of her? Kept her alive? He had a ship to run, and instead he chose to help her. Why? She hadn't done anything for him. There had to be a reason, and Cora wished that she knew what it was.


	13. Chapter 13

When Cora felt that she was able, she began to walk around and found herself on deck. Jimmy ran up to her and hugged her.

"I'm glad you're feeling better, Miss Darrow." Jimmy said.

"Well, I'm glad that you survived. Have you seen the Captain, Jimmy?"

Jimmy nodded and pointed at the bow of the ship. Cora walked up to Captain Englehorn, or rather limped because of her leg. She laid a hand on his shoulder and he jumped and turned around.

"You're finally walking. That's good news." Captain Englehorn said.

"Well, I owe it to Anne, she kept doing whatever possible to get me up and about." Cora looked down at her feet and felt her cheeks grow warm. "I believe that I should also thank you."

"I-I don't see a reason to thank me."

Cora looked back up and met Captain Englehorn's face. "I do. Anne told me what you had done. She says that you nursed me back to health, that you stayed at my bedside until she had recovered."

Captain Englehorn nodded quickly. "I did. Y-You had just scared me, and I didn't want to lose the one person that I..."

Captain Englehorn cut off his sentence and then turned to face the ocean. Cora touched his shoulder again, but he wouldn't turn around.

"That you what, sir?" Cora asked quietly.

Captain Englehorn sighed deeply. "That I care about...That I have loved since the moment that I first saw her."

"You love me?"

Captain Englehorn finally turned to Cora. "Yes, I do. Cora, when you're a captain, there are days when you don't believe that you'll come home alive. It seems terrible to say, but I had no reason for wanting to come back alive anyway. My crew, they have wives and loved ones, someone to think about to get them through the day. I never did, until I saw you."

"Why hadn't you told me before?" Cora asked.

Captain Englehorn shrugged. "Would you have loved me in return? When you had Mr. Baxter, a wealthy cinema star. What could I have given you? A small house, hardly anything to secure you financially, and no guarantee that I'd ever return from the sea-"

It was only when Cora kissed him long and hard, that Captain Englehorn was silenced. He stared at her in amazement.

"I've lived in nothing but a small apartment my entire life, and money is not exactly growing on trees nowadays. As for the chance that you may die while you're sailing...In life, you can't guarantee anything, you can only take it day by day."

Cora brought her hand to Captain Englehorn's cheek. "Abraham, I love you. I was just a blind fool not to see what I had in front of me."

"You know, after we make port in New York, I was thinking of returning to Germany for a short while. It does become lonesome in my house, and I would enjoy your company."

Cora smiled and kissed Captain Englehorn." You have it." She whispered.


End file.
